Before I was a 'star
by WordBird500
Summary: A collection of Firestar stories. First chapter contains some characters from my "Me before Mew" OC romance, so read that first, although I guess that you could not and still understand it... oh well. Happy New Year! JANUARY 2020
1. Prologue

_Heyya guys! It's been a while! (School and stuff...)_

_ This does contain some characters from my AU (Read that first please), which is supposed to connect with the actual arc. Squirrelflight and Ivypool are mentioned but under different names, and I own every other character. _

**_DISCLAIMER: I CLAIM OWNERSHIP FOR CHERRYCLOUD, SOOTSTREAK, FEATHERWISP, SMOKESKY, AND NETTLEFROST. THEREFORE IF YOU WANT TO USE THEM, YOU MUST ASK ME FOR PERMISSION; NO EXCEPTIONS. ALL OF THE KITS AND ANY OTHER CHARACTERS ARE FREE TO USE, SINCE THEY'RE JUST NAMES THAT I GENERATED. I DO NOT OWN SQUIRRELFLIGHT/SQUIRRELSTAR OR IVYPOOL/SCARPELT; THOUGH I GAVE THEM DIFFERENT NAMES, THEY ARE NOT MINE AND BELONG TO THE HUNTERS._**

_Thanks for reading!_

_Prologue_

Cherrycloud padded through the forest. Leaves crunched under her paws. She wondered how in Starclan could Thunderclan keep quiet in the forest.

Suddenly, Featherwisp tensed. Cherrycloud's daughter's ears twitched around, trying to pinpoint the sound. Finally a squirrel leapt out of the bushes and scuttled away, and Featherwisp relaxed.

Her brother, Smokesky, laughed. "Scared?" he teased.

Featherwisp frowned. "I thought it was a rogue or a loner, mouse-brain. What's so wrong about worrying?" The two quickly got into an argument.

Nettlefrost, the medicine cat, growled at the two littermates. They stopped and stared innocently at Cherrycloud and Sootstreak, as if to say, "Intervene!"

Cherrycloud sighed and fell in step with Nettlefrost as her kits began to bicker again. "Sometimes I wonder if I'm a good mother."

"You're as good of a mother as any cat, Cherrycloud. There's no reason to worry," Nettlefrost said. The pretty, blue-eyed she-cat had a brown, bushy tail and a chestnut-colored head, ears, and belly. Her name reflected not her personality, but her fur, which had stuck up, pointy like a nettle's, at birth. The medicine cat could still be stern when she wanted to, however. The rest of Riverclan knew to avoid provoking her.

The two walked in silence. Nettlefrost had been sent to help Dappleheart, the Thunderclan medicine cat, with some herb sorting. A kit had gotten into the medicine den and caused a huge mess. Sootstreak(Cherrycloud's mate), Cherrycloud, Featherwisp, and Smokesky were here to escort the medicine cat.

Finally, the entrance to the camp came into sight. Cats lounged in the sunlight, and a couple of kits scuffled in the dust in front of what must have been the nursery. Two apprentices padded across the sunlit clearing, carrying in their mouths fresh moss. Nettlefrost walked right in.

A couple cats looked up at the quintet then resumed what they were doing. One small tomkit, however, bounded up to the group. He sniffed them then wrinkled his nose. "Yuck! RiverClan!"

Another kit, this one a she-kit, bounded over. "They're here because of you, Branchkit! Didn't you brag about going into Dappleheart's den?"

The kit that was called Branchkit flushed. "But Acornkit was the one who jumped on the leaves!"

The second kit frowned. "You were with him."

A queen came out from the nursery. "Aspenkit! Branchkit! Stop gaping at the escorts!"

The kit that must have been Aspenkit whined, "But Rushflight!" but followed the queen into the nursery.

A gentle paw shook Cherrycloud out of her thoughts. "I will not bother you," mewed Nettlefrost. "You may wait outside while I help Dappleheart."

Cherrycloud nodded.

The two apprentices came out of the elder's den. "What are you doing tomorrow, Cedarpaw?" one asked the other.

"Beechstride is going to teach me some new moves!" Cedarpaw exclaimed. "What about you, Pinepaw?" The two young cats padded away, the rest of the conversation unheard.

"Oof!"

Cherrycloud looked down. A small kit had run into her. His fur was marked like an acorn's, and Cherrycloud guessed that he must be Acornkit. She looked at the kit. "Where is your mother, little kit?"

Acornkit's eyes widened. "Um…Uh…"

The two other kits bounded outside again. Aspenkit squealed, "Come on, Acornkit! Let's play moss ball outside!"

Cherrycloud smiled fondly. She could still remember the day that Featherwisp and Smokesky had been born. They had been so small, so innocent… She had wanted to hug them to her chest and keep them little forever. When they had become apprentices, and then warriors, she couldn't have been prouder, yet a small part of her ached for those small balls of fur and joy.

A commotion from the little kits broke her thoughts.

"What's this?"

"Ew, it smells like kittypet!"

"Destroy it!"

"No!" a distant wail called. An elder dragged herself from the elder's den, and the kits backed away. The she-cat was badly scarred, but her fur markings showed that she was a silver and white tabby. Scratches ran up and down her flank. Her shoulders bore the worst scar, a deep cut where the fur had not yet grown back, and her ears were ragged and cuffed. She walked over to the collar and smelled it.

"It's a miracle."

Acornkit laughed a harsh laugh. "Scarpelt's going mad again!"

The she-cat snarled. "Watch your mouth, Acornkit. This collar belonged to the greatest leaders of ThunderClan, and I had the honor to exist before he died."

Aspenkit snickered. "None of the leaders of the best Clan, ThunderClan, was a kittypet!"

Cherrycloud was about to say that Riverclan was the best Clan, but decided to keep her mouth shut.

Scarpelt fixed her gaze on her. "Do you know who he is?"

Branchkit sneered with her companions. "I bet you she'll get it wrong."

Cherrycloud raised her head high. "If you must know, this great leader was Firestar. Born a kittypet, died a leader."

All the kits looked up incredulously. "Firestar?" one of them breathed.

Scarpelt laughed a raspy breath. "Of course! I share his blood. My grandfather was his nephew, and before I was Scarpelt, I was Ivypool. I spied on Dark Forest cats, and we won the Great Battle. And after being a queen, my scars gave me my name." She looked at the little kits. "Now do you know me?"

The kits, wide-eyed in admiration, were obviously in awe.

Scarpelt turned to Cherrycloud. "Are you, perhaps, Thunderclan in any way?"

Cherrycloud tried to avoid that question. "Why do you want to know?"

The she-cat laughed. "You can whisper it in my ear."

Cherrycloud leaned closer to the elder. Her breath smelled worse than mouse bile, but she wrinkled her nose and kept quiet. "It was my father. Swiftdusk of Thunderclan. He had an affair with my mother, Snowstalk. I'm… half-clan."

Scarpelt nodded. "Kin of Squirrelstar, very distantly, of course." She opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off by Aspenkit tugging at her tail. "Yes, little one?"

"Tell us a story!" the kit squealed.

"About Firestar!" Branchkit and Acornkit chorused in unison.

Scarpelt settled into a more comfortable position and let the kits play with her tail. "Before Firestar was a leader, he was Fireheart, and before that, he was Firepaw. But before that, he was not Firekit, but a kittypet named Rusty…"

_EXTRA NOTES!_

_As mentioned in my (notes? intro?) notes above, I tried to make the two AUs connect with the actual arc, but since Vision of Shadows is already over, they're just in the same AU now(just a little too complicated). Also, sorry for the late update; I wanted this to be the merry Shipmas along with Me Before Mew and after September rolled in I was like "wait, Before I was a 'star isn't even a romance" and then I didn't do anything for the next 3ish months. (Yes, I know, I'm pathetic.) When I FINALLY got around to actually publishing Me Before Mew (ima justa abbreviate it to MBM kay) I started to do this one and then my mom was like go eat dinner we gots to go to (one of my afterschool activities cuz i donut remember) and I didn't do anything anymore. _

_So yeah. That's my explanation._

_Can I keep my job?_

_Anyways, there's gonna be less of me typing in this one (partially cuz I'm lazy, but I also wanted my fanfics to be less me talking and more actual story). I'll also try to integrate it into my later fanfics. You know those fanfics where the author rambles on for what may turn into 6 hours of blabber orally and you gotta scroll through a buncha text that really doesn't need to be there? (Reviewers: MHM IM READING ONE RIGHT NOW PLZ SHUSH) I think that most people don't like scrolling through that, and I'm just a freaking hypocrite and I need to calm down with my endless chit-chat. (looks at entire 2 paragraphs I just typed)_

_So yeah. I've officially shut up, so continue to read the story! :) _


	2. The Beginning

_**DISCLAIMER: I CLAIM OWNERSHIP FOR CHERRYCLOUD, SOOTSTREAK, FEATHERWISP, SMOKESKY, AND NETTLEFROST. THEREFORE, IF YOU WANT TO USE THEM, YOU MUST ASK ME FOR PERMISSION; NO EXCEPTIONS. ALL OF THE KITS AND ANY OTHER CHARACTERS ARE FREE TO USE, SINCE THEY'RE JUST NAMES THAT I GENERATED. I DO NOT OWN SQUIRRELFLIGHT/SQUIRRELSTAR OR IVYPOOL/SCARPELT; THOUGH I GAVE THEM DIFFERENT NAMES, THEY ARE NOT MINE AND BELONG TO THE HUNTERS. THIS IS THE SAME FOR FIRESTAR AND HIS SIBLINGS, AS WELL AS SMUDGE.**_

**Rusty's POV**

At first there was just milk. Warmth and milk. Another kit pushing for a good spot on Mother's belly. Sleeping. And then I opened my eyes. The other kits did too.

My mother called me Rusty. She was Nutmeg. My siblings were Princess, Luna, Tommy, and Filou. Our father was Jake.

Nutmeg said that she couldn't keep us. The housefolk would come and take some of us away. Mother was right. As soon as Luna and Tommy were weaned, they were gone. Filou was gone too. For a long time, it was just me and Princess.

Princess was fun. We would play with Mother's tail and try catching moths together. When it got cold, she would press against me and keep both of us warm.

Mother said that I looked like Father the most. She said we would see him someday. Father was big and strong, she said, like a lion from the stories she told us. The housefolk gave us all collars when we were of age, she said, but Father wore it with pride.

Soon my kit fur fell away, and I was separated from Mother. Princess was too. We cried together.

My new nest was bigger than the one Mother lived in. There was another kitten too. He said he was called Smudge. Princess lived in the nest nearby. I saw Tommy and Filou often now. Luna lived a little farther away, but she would come see me and my littermates now and then.

Everything was good.

Smudge would tell me stories of cats that lived in the woods beyond the fence, gorging on blood and bones. He said that they would kill you in a matter of seconds or bury you alive. My littermates would cower in fear, but I didn't really see what was scary about this. Besides, they were cats, right? Cats couldn't eat bones.

I told this to Smudge and he said that they had eaten bones for years, and their teeth were super sharp, to help them chew them.

I didn't believe him.

Smudge, and I would play together. Moss-ball was popular, and our owners would give us little feather toys that we would try to catch sometimes. We also practiced swatting at moths, and pouncing on blades of grass.

My bed was soft. I always fell asleep immediately.


	3. Jake

_**DISCLAIMER: I CLAIM OWNERSHIP FOR CHERRYCLOUD, SOOTSTREAK, FEATHERWISP, SMOKESKY, AND NETTLEFROST. THEREFORE, IF YOU WANT TO USE THEM, YOU MUST ASK ME FOR PERMISSION; NO EXCEPTIONS. ALL OF THE KITS AND ANY OTHER CHARACTERS ARE FREE TO USE, SINCE THEY'RE JUST NAMES THAT I GENERATED. I DO NOT OWN SQUIRRELFLIGHT/SQUIRRELSTAR OR IVYPOOL/SCARPELT; THOUGH I GAVE THEM DIFFERENT NAMES, THEY ARE NOT MINE AND BELONG TO THE HUNTERS. THIS IS THE SAME FOR FIRESTAR AND HIS SIBLINGS, AS WELL AS SMUDGE.**_

One day, Mother visited me. She brought a big, fiery orange tom that looked like he could've been a forest cat. Smudge made a wild dash into the nest.

"Mother," I asked tentatively, "Who's this?"

Mother licked my ears. "This is your father, Rusty."

The big tom nodded. "I am Jake."

I dipped my head to Jake. "Good morning, Father."

My father's laugh seemed to shake the heavens, but his voice was soft and full of content as he leaned down to purr, "Good morning, son."

"He looks just like you, Jake," said my mother as I caught sight of a colorful leaf that drifted over my nose. I leapt after it, and caught it between my paws. Jake said something to my mother and licked the top of her head. Then he padded over to me.

"Do you want to see how the forest cats hunt?"

I nodded and opened my mouth to say something when Smudge interrupted my sentence.

"F-f-forest cats? Are you a forest cat?" he stuttered. Jake turned his head towards Smudge and he gave a squeak of fright and jumped into a bush.

Jake laughed again, causing Smudge's shrub to shake because of its occupant's yelp of fright. "I know a forest cat, but I'm not one. Its an honor to be called one."

"Honor?" said Smudge, who had come out of his bush but still quivered with fright. "But they- they eat bones!"

Jake looked aghast. "Forest cats do not eat bones; for goodness sakes, they're cats!"

"That's what I said, Father," I piped up, "the first time that he told me."

Jake purred. "Good, son. Now, I must be off."

I went up to my mother again, and let her lick the dirt off my face. "You know where Tommy's nest is, right? It's the third one over from this side of the fence." I pointed with my tail.

My mother smiled and licked the top of my head again. "That's my son," she purred.


	4. The Injury

_**DISCLAIMER: I CLAIM OWNERSHIP FOR CHERRYCLOUD, SOOTSTREAK, FEATHERWISP, SMOKESKY, AND NETTLEFROST. THEREFORE, IF YOU WANT TO USE THEM, YOU MUST ASK ME FOR PERMISSION; NO EXCEPTIONS. ALL OF THE KITS AND ANY OTHER CHARACTERS ARE FREE TO USE, SINCE THEY'RE JUST NAMES THAT I GENERATED. I DO NOT OWN SQUIRRELFLIGHT/SQUIRRELSTAR OR IVYPOOL/SCARPELT; THOUGH I GAVE THEM DIFFERENT NAMES, THEY ARE NOT MINE AND BELONG TO THE HUNTERS. THIS IS THE SAME FOR FIRESTAR AND HIS SIBLINGS, AS WELL AS SMUDGE.**_

_A few weeks later..._

I exited the nest with Smudge. It was a super sunny day. I wondered if Luna would come to visit me, or my mother. I missed them.

A blur of color rushed past me. Filou tore in front of us, his paws a whirlwind. "Tommy's been attacked! A forest cat ambushed him while he was trying to get a mouse!"

Smudge dashed after him, with me trailing behind. I wished he would slow down. What was the big deal anyways? Tommy had been on their land.

I nearly crashed into Smudge as he braked suddenly. All of my thoughts were interrupted as I saw Tommy, lying on the ground, motionless. Princess and Luna sat nearby, shading him from the hot sun.

I immediately dashed over. "Are there any injuries?"

Tommy groaned.

Princess shook her head. Luna said, in her soft quiet voice, "We think he got pounced on."

I sighed inwardly. So there was no blood. We had come here for no reason. I stepped closer to my littermates. "Can you get him inside the nest?"

Luna immediately took action, and Princess and Filou followed her example. Smudge stayed at Tommy's rear, and I took the front.

We got Tommy back to his nest. Watching from a nearby bush, we saw his housefolk gasp, yowl some noises, and take Tommy inside.

Luna stood. "I'd better get back to my nest too. It was good to see you." She left, the bushes rustling behind her. Filou left too, with Princess, Smudge, and me leaving as well.


	5. The Dream

_**DISCLAIMER: I CLAIM OWNERSHIP FOR CHERRYCLOUD, SOOTSTREAK, FEATHERWISP, SMOKESKY, AND NETTLEFROST. THEREFORE, IF YOU WANT TO USE THEM, YOU MUST ASK ME FOR PERMISSION; NO EXCEPTIONS. ALL OF THE KITS AND ANY OTHER CHARACTERS ARE FREE TO USE, SINCE THEY'RE JUST NAMES THAT I GENERATED. I DO NOT OWN SQUIRRELFLIGHT/SQUIRRELSTAR OR IVYPOOL/SCARPELT; THOUGH I GAVE THEM DIFFERENT NAMES, THEY ARE NOT MINE AND BELONG TO THE HUNTERS. THIS IS THE SAME FOR FIRESTAR AND HIS SIBLINGS, AS WELL AS SMUDGE.**_

I had a dream that night.

Two cats stood on a hill. I stood and walked closer. One was a pretty calico cat that smelled like flowers and happy, sunny days. The other was a bluish cat, with the air of a leader.

The first cat spoke. Her musical voice was as pretty as her scent. "Bluestar."

The other cat sighed. "Spottedleaf. What does Starclan have to tell me?"

The one named Spottedleaf opened her mouth to speak, but instead of her voice, a deep rumble came out of her throat, and her eyes seemed to glow. The other cat, Bluestar, looked startled too.

"Fire alone will save the clan."

I woke.


	6. The Birth of a Star

_**DISCLAIMER: I CLAIM OWNERSHIP FOR CHERRYCLOUD, SOOTSTREAK, FEATHERWISP, SMOKESKY, AND NETTLEFROST. THEREFORE, IF YOU WANT TO USE THEM, YOU MUST ASK ME FOR PERMISSION; NO EXCEPTIONS. ALL OF THE KITS AND ANY OTHER CHARACTERS ARE FREE TO USE, SINCE THEY'RE JUST NAMES THAT I GENERATED. I DO NOT OWN SQUIRRELFLIGHT/SQUIRRELSTAR OR IVYPOOL/SCARPELT; THOUGH I GAVE THEM DIFFERENT NAMES, THEY ARE NOT MINE AND BELONG TO THE HUNTERS. THIS IS THE SAME FOR FIRESTAR AND HIS SIBLINGS, AS WELL AS SMUDGE.**_

A few weeks later…

"Are you sure that you want to leave?" Smudge asked me for the seventeenth time.

I sighed. "Smudge, I already told you-"

"But do you want to eat bones?"

I smiled inwardly. "I'll catch my own mice if they really eat bones."

"You'll come back, won't you?"

I nodded, and leapt onto the fence. In no time I was attacked by a familiar gray blur. Bluestar and Lionheart emerged from a nearby bush.

"Welcome back, Rusty."

_I changed some things with the story; obviously, this is not how Rusty's departure is played out in the actual arc. Rusty's littermates are in his description in the Warriors Wiki; I don't really know if it's still up there. I turned Smudge into a sort of Ravenpaw, though I am aware that he is not so scared in the arc. The Hunters didn't really elaborate on his personality too much, so I exaggerated his fear of the forest cats he shows in "Into the Wild."_

_Thanks for reading! Have an amazing day!_


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